As is quite common with newly-elected politicians, the new mayor of the city of Toronto, John Tory, has come out of the gates bucking to get the job done. Yesterday, he announced that traffic gridlock in that city will be a top priority. Indeed, he said that even if he had to drive a tow truck himself, he would do everything he could to ensure that traffic begins to flow more smoothly within the city as soon as possible.
Whether or not you appreciate his politics, you have to admire Mr. Tory’s gumption. He wants something to happen, and he’s prepared to roll up his sleeves and make it happen. Now, he may have been speaking somewhat rhetorically, but if he is serious about his own participation in solving the problem, that’s impressive.
How often are we, as God’s people, quick to point out a problem? If we’re honest, most of us can think of more occasions than we can number when we’ve been willing to highlight a problem. And how often have we, as God’s people, been just as quick to jump in and help solve the problem?
Hopefully, almost as many times as we have pointed out problems, we have helped find solutions. But that’s not always the case. The most helpful and effective people are those who will not only show us what’s wrong, but will help us make it right.
Jesus was like that, wasn’t he? More often than not, in his case, the Pharisees would point out the problem, and he would create the solution. But one example of Jesus acting on his own came when he cleared the temple of the money changers and buyers and sellers of animals for sacrifice (cf. Matthew 21.12-13). He saw the problem, and he solved the problem – in a more practical way than some people were (and are) comfortable with!
The hands-on Jesus might seem a little less “meek and mild” than the teacher Jesus. But there is only one Jesus. And he, too, is bucking to get the job done. Are you?
“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him” (1 John 4.16b-17, NIV, emphasis added).
